


Art of Medicine, Art of Humanity

by FaramirsBlessing



Category: Yuri!!! on Ice (Anime)
Genre: Doctor Viktor, Emergency Rooms, Gen, Hospitals, I love medicine, Little Yuri, Nurse Phichit, Nurse Yuuri, medical AU
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-04-17
Updated: 2018-02-13
Packaged: 2018-10-20 07:14:17
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 3,211
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10657557
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/FaramirsBlessing/pseuds/FaramirsBlessing
Summary: Little Yuri gets himself injured and in the emergency room and is under the care of nurse Yuuri Katsuki and Dr. Viktor Nikiforov.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Based on an AMAZING medical AU on tumblr. Everyone check it out please! I'm a nursing student, so I'm totally in love with this stuff. And I'm hella gay. So, together, gay nurse and doctor in the hospital is obviously my aesthetic. 
> 
> PS- He's Yuuri Katsuki in this story. I would have preferred to refer to him as Katsuki Yuuri, but I set the story in an American hospital (the only type of hospital I'm familiar with), so I thought it would be more appropriate to have his first name before his last name. 
> 
> Enjoy!!
> 
> Extra notes: Some of you asked for the tumblr account that made the medical AU that this fanfic is loosely based on. There's two: @chantedeer and @castihalo. They work on it together and its absolutely precious! Go check it out!

It was Yuri’s sixth birthday the first time he went to the hospital. He had been playing in the backyard with Otabek - an elaborate game involving knights and wild tigers - when he had fallen funny on his leg. He’d cried and cried for a few minutes and Otabek fluttered around him like a nervous hen before Yuri’s grandpa appeared. From out of nowhere, Yuri was moved from the ground into his grandfather’s strong arms and he latched onto his grandfather’s brown corduroy jacket like a lifeline. 

Now they were sitting in the waiting room of the children’s hospital and, needless to say, Yuri hated it. 

There were too many kids here - and they were all screaming and crying and wailing. There were older kids with their moms and dads and babies with red cheeks and ear-piercing shrieks in their baby carriers. 

And the colors of the walls were too bright - green and blue and yellow with some annoying theme of the forest. Toys were littered around the waiting room - ones that made noise, ones with blocks, ones with magnetic sand. It was all too much. 

Yuri slapped his hands over his ears and squeezed his eyes shut tight when a particularly loud toddler screamed at the top of her lungs. He curled himself into his grandpa’s lap and fought back tears. 

No, there would be no more crying today. He was going to be brave and strong just like his grandpa! 

“Pliestsky!” someone called and Yuri felt his grandpa get to his feet and headed towards the front of the room. Little Yuri usually would usually have been quite vehement about walking to the doctor’s by himself, but he was overwhelmed and his leg hurt and he was honestly a little scared. 

He clutched tighter to his grandpa and used his coat to muffle a little sob. His grandfather held him tighter. 

Soon they were in a little room and the screams had gone away, replaced by the soft muffled sound of shoes in the hallway and the smell of antiseptic. Yuri wrinkled his nose and then turned around. 

This room wasn't so bad. 

It was smaller and painted a nice soft blue. There was an examination table in one corner of the room and he and his grandpa were seated on the edge of a hospital bed. Yuri’s eyes purposely avoided the medical tools hanging on the walls and instead settled on a box of toys in the corner. 

His entire face lit up. 

“A cat!” 

******************************** 

It had been one hell of a day for Yuuri Katsuki. It was his first year as an actual RN, and although he knew life outside of the clinical setting would be busy, he hadn't really expected it to be this busy. 

He groaned as Minnie, the girl from the front desk, handed him yet another patient file. 

Minnie laughed. 

“Yuuri, c’mon, I know it’s been a long day, but Phichit is still going! I mean, look at him!” 

Yuuri turned to see his best friend gliding through the halls, smiling and waving at all his patients and grinning like he had seen the beginning of the world as he slid into a new patient’s room - a screaming baby girl. Yuuri had no idea how he did it. It was amazing. 

But Yuuri was a great nurse too. One of the best in the hospital, if rumor was to be believed. An expert in pediatric emergency care, the best to call if a patient was coding, Yuuri was a legendary nurse in the hospital. 

He sighed and bit his lip, looking down at the file. 

A six-year-old boy. 

“This is the last patient for your shift, Yuuri,” he told himself as he headed towards the assigned room. “You’ve got this. It shouldn't be too bad.” 

As he slid into the room, he came eye to eye with a little boy - if it wasn't for the file Yuuri would have assumed the slim little thing in his grandfather’s lap was no more than four. He was glaring at Yuuri, but Yuuri saw that he was pale and was clutching tightly to a stuffed cat, his grip so tight his knuckles were white. With a gentle smile, Yuuri slid into the room and shut the door behind him, muffling the sounds of the other screaming patients. Grabbing a stool, he plopped himself down on it and rolled over to the boy and his grandfather. 

“Hello, my name is Yuuri and I’ll be your nurse-”

“My name is Yuri!” the little blonde interrupted. He looked angry. “That’s my name! You can’t have the same name as me!” 

“Yuri-” the boy’s grandfather began, but Yuuri waved the boy’s insult away. 

“No, no, it’s all right,” Yuuri said with a smile. “It’s nice to meet you, Yuri. Even though we might have the same name, I bet we spell them differently. Would you spell your name for me?” 

“Y-u-r-i.” 

“Ah! My name has two u’s! So we’re different.” He grinned. “All right?” 

Yuri stared at the nurse for a few long moments before nodding solemnly. 

“All right.” 

“Great.” Yuuri nodded and looked down at the file. “It says here that you hurt your leg, Yuri. Do you think I can take a look?” 

Yuri eyed him suspiciously. The nurse was young and he smiled, but he looked like an idiot with his big black glasses and scrubs with brown poodles all over them. But it smelled funny in this hospital and his leg hurt and he didn't want it to hurt anymore than it had to. So he shook his head and scooted closer to his grandpa. 

“No,” he said. “You can’t.” 

His grandpa sighed, but Yuri was surprised that the nurse’s smile didn't fade. 

“That’s okay, Yuri,” he said. “Why don’t you show me where it hurts? I won’t touch you.” 

Yuri pointed to the shin of his right leg, and the nurse Yuuri followed his fingers with his eyes. He took one look and nodded. 

“That looks painful,” he said. “It’s already swelled up.” He bit his lip. “I’m going to ask the doctor to come soon,” he said. He got up and opened the door, scribbling something on the eraser board outside of Yuri’s room. He smiled but Yuri noticed that it wasn't as bright as before. His heart beat a little faster. 

“I’ll be back in a few minutes to take your vitals, Yuri. Hang in there.” 

And the nurse left. 

*************************** 

Dr. Viktor Nikiforov was the best pediatric orthopedic surgeon in the whole state and Yuuri knew with one look at Yuri’s leg that the doctor should probably take a look at it. 

He was a hard doctor to get a hold of, but Yuuri only wanted the best for his patients and, luckily, Dr. Nikiforov worked in the same hospital. 

It was three hours before the aforementioned doctor arrived in the emergency room. By that point, Yuuri and Yuri’s grandpa and managed to get Yuri to rest on the small bed and now the boy was asleep. He was hooked up to an IV, dressed in a loose hospital gown, and a hospital bracelet was looped around his thin wrist. 

Yuuri pinched the bridge of his nose and looked up at the clock. 

11 pm. 

'My shift was supposed to be over three hours ago,' he thought. 'God, I’m so tired.' 

But when he looked over at his patient and his grandfather, his fatigue all but disappeared. 'No, I know why I’m here. I’m worried about Yuri and I want someone who knows what they’re doing to see him. Honestly, half the ER docs are complete idiots and, judging by Yuri’s vital signs and the pain on his face, it's necessary to get someone who knew what they were doing down here.' 

Yuuri was watching Yuri’s chest rise steadily as he slept, relieved that the boy didn't seem to have difficulty breathing, when the door opened a crack. 

There, smiling and waving, was Dr. Nikiforov. Yuuri got to his feet and slipped out of the room, meeting the doctor in the hall. 

“Hello!” the doctor greeted with a grin so wide that Yuuri was taken aback. 

He’d heard the rumors about this surgeon - the silver-haired Russian with skill so highly regarded that he had worked with some of the most difficult and complicated cases in the world with an 100% success rate. It was like the man was some type of god, with a very rare and special gift. 

Naturally, Yuuri had thought he was a serious man with a towering, slightly angry facade. Like all surgeons, he would be haughty and full of himself, and wouldn't listen to a word the nurses had to say. 

But he wasn’t. 

He was bright and happy and Yuuri couldn't help but think that his silver hair shone like the moon even under the fluorescent lighting of the emergency room. His eyes were a light sky blue, soft and kind and smart. 

What stood out the most, however, was his ridiculous smile. It was so wide that Yuuri wondered how it didn't take up his entire face. 

As Yuuri gawked at him in shock, the doctor grabbed his hand and shook it enthusiastically. 

He was dressed in a pair of maroon scrubs, a white lab coat tossed casually over his shoulders, and a purple stethoscope was strung across his neck. 

“Hello, hello!” he greeted, smiling as wide as ever. “I’m Dr. Viktor Nikiforov!” 

“Um-um,” Yuuri stammered, suddenly at a loss for words. “I-I’m Yuuri Katsuki.” 

“Hello, Yuuri!” The surgeon released Yuuri’s hand and stuck his hands in his lab coat pockets, rocking back and forth. “You must be the nurse who asked me to come down here.” 

“Y-Yes.” 

'Why the heck can't I talk????' Yuuri thought. 

The surgeon smiled at him. 

“I’m glad you did! The surgery floor can be awfully dull sometimes!” 

Yuuri blinked. 

“Huh?” 

“Anyway, who’s our patient?” 

Yuuri didn't miss how Dr. Nikiforov referred to Yuri as “our” patient and he suddenly liked the man more than ever. Doctors had a tendency to overlook the nurses and suppose every patient was simply theirs, but Dr. Nikiforov didn’t. 

“His name is Yuri Pliestsky,” Yuuri said, and he stopped stammering immediately. He never hesitated when it came to his patients. He didn't notice the sudden sparkle in Dr. Nikiforov’s eyes. “He came in four hours ago with pain in his right leg which he acquired after an incident while playing. I noticed edema immediately. Upon admission, he rated his pain as a six, and after administering 2 mg of Ketorolac intravenously at 9 pm, he rated his pain as a four. He’s been asleep for two hours now.” 

Dr. Nikiforov nodded. 

“Good, good,” he said. “And you used the Faces Pain Scale, I assume?” 

“Yes, that’s the standard procedure in the emergency room.” 

“All right.” He nodded at Yuuri. “Let’s go see Yuri now. Lead the way.” 

****************************************************************************


	2. Chapter 2

***************************** 

The doctor was smiling and the nurse was slightly blushing when they walked back into the room. 

“Mr. Pliestsky, this is Dr. Nikiforov,” Yuuri said to Yuri’s grandfather, motioning to the man in the white lab coat. “He’s here to take a look at Yuri’s leg.” 

“Hello,” Mr. Pliestsky said in a thick Russian accent, shaking the surgeon’s hand. “It’s good to meet you, doctor.” 

“You too!” Dr. Nikiforov beamed. He looked over the man’s shoulder at the little form curled up on the bed. “So this is your grandson, then?” 

“Yes. This is Yuri.” 

The surgeon plopped down on his butt to be at eye level with Yuri. 

“D-Dr. Nikiforov, there’s a stool right here. .” Yuuri stammered, but the doctor waved him away without turning around. 

“No, no, this is all right, Yuuri,” he said. “I like sitting eye level with patients.” He fidgeted on the colorful tile. “But my goodness, this floor is hard! You should really think about getting some carpet down here! Or at least a rug!” 

Yuuri gaped again at the doctor, who was babbling mindlessly about . . . rugs? What was going on? Was this really the brilliant orthopedic surgeon everyone praised or was this some kind of prank? 

“Hello, Yuri,” Dr. Nikiforov said. His voice was soft and quiet and he was smiling more gently this time. “If you can hear me, would you wake up?” 

Yuri’s lips parted a bit, sticking with a trace of saliva, and Dr. Nikiforov giggled behind his hand. 

“My goodness, you’re so cute, Yuri!” 

At this, the boy’s eyes snapped wide open. He jolted up and glared at the surgeon, pointing an accusing finger at him. 

“I’m not cute!” he snapped. “Take it back!” 

“Yuri!” Yuri’s grandfather cried, but Dr. Nikiforov laughed. 

“All right, all right,” he said, holding up his hands in surrender, “you’re not cute. But you sure are brave, aren't you?” 

Some of the tension melted from Yuri’s body and he cocked his head at the doctor, confused. 

“Huh?” 

“Well, Yuuri here told me that you came in with a leg that really hurt.” Yuri nodded. “I’m Dr. Nikiforov and I came all the way from the fourth floor to see you!” 

Yuri squinted at him. 

“Why?” 

“Yuuri asked me to come,” Dr. Nikiforov said, pointing at the nurse. Yuuri smiled and waved at Yuri, who only glared at him, before turning his glare to Dr. Nikiforov. 

“What took you so long?” he demanded.

“Yuri-!” 

Dr. Nikiforov laughed. 

“I’m afraid I’m quite a busy man. I have a looooootttt of patients.” He smiled at Yuri. “But I came down here as quickly as I could.” 

“Really?” Yuri sounded dubious. 

“Really really!” 

Yuri stared at this new man for a few long moments before nodding. He pointed at his leg, which was carefully cushioned with a couple of pillows. 

“Fix it,” he demanded, “Dr. Niki or whatever your name is.” 

Yuri’s grandfather sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose but Dr. Nikiforov just laughed. 

“It’s Nikiforov, but you can call me Viktor if you want, Yuri.” 

Yuri nodded. 

“Viktor. Good.” 

“Isn’t it?” the surgeon said with a smile. He turned to Yuuri and Yuri’s grandfather. “Why don’t you all call me Viktor?” 

Yuuri spluttered at this sudden break of protocol - he really didn't want to call anyone, least of all someone so famous - by their first name, but Viktor seemed to insist on it, so he sighed and nodded. 

“All right, Dr. Viktor,” he said. 

Viktor’s smile got impossibly wider. 

“Dr. Viktor!” he cried. He clapped his hands together excitedly. “I love that, Yuuri!” He grinned. “Dr. Viktor it is then!” 

*********************

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Honestly, Viktor and Yuuri would be the cutest people in the whole damn pediatric hospital.


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi! So so sorry for the late update- I had writer's block for this story and I just couldn't get over it. But tomorrow is my first day of my pediatric rotation and I'm SO excited that I just had to start up this cute story of the gays working at a hospital again. Enjoy!

_Last chapter: “Dr. Viktor!” he cried. He clapped his hands together excitedly. “I love that, Yuuri!” He grinned. “Dr. Viktor it is then!”_

*********************************************

“Dr. Viktor,” Yuri said, and he reached forward and tugged at Viktor’s lab coat. When Viktor turned to him, he wasn't surprised to see that the boy’s eyes were shining with unshed tears, which he figured were a born from a mix of pain, frustration, and fear. He smiled gently.

“All right, Yuri,” he said. “Let’s take a look at that leg of yours now. I’m going to sit at the foot of the bed with Yuuri. Do you want your grandpa to hold your hand?”

Yuri hesitated — he didn't want to look like a baby cause he was six now — but it really hurt and he loved his grandpa and maybe he would make it better. . .

With quiet pleading eyes, Yuri held out a shaking hand to his grandpa. His grandpa grabbed his hand eagerly and squeezed it tight, sitting next to him on the edge of the bed. Viktor motioned over at Yuuri and the doctor and nurse seated themselves at the foot of the little hospital bed. Yuri’s blue eyes focused on them, wide with apprehension, but he relaxed when both Viktor and Yuuri smiled at him. Yuuri even gave him a little wave. Despite himself, Yuri felt a little better.

“All righty then, Yuri,” Dr. Viktor said, “I’m going to touch your leg now, all right? You tell me where it hurts the most. Okay?”

Yuri nodded.

“Okay,” he squeaked.

“I’ll be as gentle as I can,” Dr. Viktor reassured and he moved his blue eyes to settle on Yuri’s left leg, propped up carefully with a few pillows.

His mind went to work immediately.

Edema and discoloration located on lower end of the tibia. It looked serious, unfortunately, and Viktor barely kept back a tsk of worry. He looked at Yuri’s toes and pressed his big toe in between his fingers. The skin blanched but the healthy pink color returned almost immediately. Good. The blood flow to his foot hasn't been compromised.

He turned to Yuuri.

“Did you feel his leg earlier tonight?”

“No,” Yuuri said with a shake of his head. “He seemed frightened so I thought it best not to. Nothing was compromised and I’ve been keeping check of his vitals all night, so I’ve been waiting for you to properly examine his leg.”

Viktor nodded slowly.

“It would have been fine for you to examine his leg, Yuuri,” he said, “but thank you for waiting for me. I might be able to get a better understanding at what we’re looking at here. What were his latest vital signs?”

Yuuri’s eyes flicked to the whiteboard on the wall and read the list to the doctor while he looked at Yuri’s leg.

“Heart rate: 120, Respirations: 31, BP: 122/74.”

Viktor nodded, brow furrowed, although he didn't seem too concerned about the numbers. His gaze moved to the small probe on Yuri’s finger.

“O2 sats?”

“98%.” Yuuri smiled at Yuri. “You’re doing great, Yuri.”

Yuri frowned at him suspiciously.

“Am I?” he asked.

Yuuri blinked, taken aback. This kid was feistier than any other he had worked with before. . .

“Yes, of course!” he said after a moment.

“Why is Dr. Viktor frowning then?” the boy said, pointing at Viktor accusingly. Yuuri turned to him and the doctor looked up quickly, frown wiped off his face to be rapidly replaced with his bright, and Yuuri thought with embarrassment, beautiful, smile.

“Sorry, sorry, Yuri!” the surgeon said, laughing. “I frown when I’m thinking! There’s nothing wrong with what nurse Yuuri just told me, I promise!”

Yuri squinted at him.

“Are you sure?”

“Positive!” He leaned forward, holding out his pinkie finger. “Pinkie promise!”

Yuri glared at him.

“That’s stupid,” he said, crossing his arms over his chest, but Viktor wasn’t phased. Still holding out his pinkie, he turned to Yuuri, grinning.

“Pinkie promise that what you just told me is nothing bad, nurse Yuuri!” he said, bright and beaming.

Yuuri curled his pinkie finger around Viktor’s without hesitating. _He was warm._ Viktor and Yuuri laughed and bounced their hands up and down.

“Cross my heart and hope to die, stick a needle in my eye!” they chorused.

Viktor laughed louder, happier, and meet Yuuri’s thumb with his.

“And seal it with a kiss!” he cried.

Yuuri turned bright red and Viktor pulled away, still smiling, back to his patient.

“There!” he said to Yuri. “We pinkie promised! Nothing is wrong, Yuri.”

Yuri’s lips pulled up into a mischievous grin and he looked over at Yuuri.

“Will you really stick a needle in his eye?” he asked.

“Yuri!!!” 

************************

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> For anyone who's curious, Yuri's vital signs are okay. The normal vitals for a six-year-old are as follows:  
> Heart rate (awake): 65-110 (Yuri's are a little high because he's in pain, but it's nothing to worry about)  
> Respiratory rate: 18-30 (Again, a bit high because of pain)  
> Systolic Blood Pressure (top number of blood pressure): 97-112  
> Diastolic Blood Pressure (bottom number of BP): 57-71 (Yuri's BP is a bit high because he's in pain. Again, nothing too serious.)  
> Normal O2 Sats (Oxygen Saturation or how much oxygen is in your red blood cells): 95-100%. If you have a heart condition or live in a place with a high altitude, the normals of O2 sats may be slightly lower. 
> 
> Okay, okay that's enough medicine for today lol.
> 
> Also, pinkie promises are no joke. 
> 
> I hope you enjoyed!!! Thanks for reading!


End file.
